American senators are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as GOP senators floated a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The effect on Americans from the lengthiest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend session got under way, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Reaction
Democratic senators expressed concerned reactions to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate adjourned without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an developing plan from a small group of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an proposal to reopen the government and continue the payments for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker continued in arguing that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because citizens will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator said in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of repealing and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
